Petiquette

Everyone has their pet peeves, but mine are directly associated with actual pets. I apologize for my soapbox rant in advance.

To All Pet Owners:

• Leashes are the law. I know we all want to live in a world where our dogs can frolic off-leash, but that is called a dog park. My neighbors reasons for not using a leash will not work with me, "He was close to me," "You don't expect to run into people this late at night (it was 9:30 and what the hell does that mean?)" and "He was on leash (uh, ok expect it was invisible)."
• Respect property right, period. In case you didn't know, not all people like dogs. Many families choose not to have pets and this is their choice. These people should not have to deal with your dog running all over their yard and peeing on every vertical object.
  
• Pick up the crap. Invest in some poop bags. Dogs poop and if you don't pick it up you set a bad example for all dog owners everywhere.
  
• Flexi leashes suck. You may be thinking, "Oh I love being able to let my dog roam and have more freedom." Sorry, but I refuse to use a leash that comes with warnings that involve amputations. On a side note, these leashes never ask your dog to comply with any rules regarding pulling on leash. This is why many of my students get drug around the training room. The dog has no regard for the person attached to the leash.
• Correction in dog world is perfectly normal. I understand my knowledge of dog body language is larger than most of the general public, however one of my biggest annoyances is people not understanding normal dog behavior. Dogs use aggression as normal behavior to convey to other dogs very important messages. For example, a young goofy dog may approach an older more mature dog in a very rude manner (think young inexperienced boy trying to hit on a woman). The mature dog has every right in this situation to correct the young dog. If effect, the older dog is saying "that is rude and this is what happens to rude dogs." Usually this correction is loud and showy, but the intent is not to injure the other dog. These correction can be incredibly important to the development of a young dog. This type of aggression happens on a regular basis in human language. A child does something wrong and the mother has "that look" that ends the interact immediately. Of course if the mother was mad at the child and decided that beating him was appropriate we would consider this abnormal behavior. In the dog world there are abnormal forms of dog aggression. In these cases dog behavior is ways that are outside the bounds of normal dog communication. Suzanne Clothier's article "He Just Wants to Say Hi!" explains this more in depth.

Well, that is enough of my soapbox for a bit. Hope everyone had an exciting weekend. Mine was pretty uneventful: work, family dinners and a little more work. Christian and I did see The Bourne Ultimatum. If you want to watch a thrilling movie full of abnormal aggression this is the one for you. It is great!

Hot, Hot, Hot!

In case you don't live in Omaha or surrounding areas and haven't checked the weather lately, it is friggin' hot here. Christian calls me "Junior Meteorologist" when he asks for the weather updates, which is a good nickname because I read weather blogs about fronts and air masses. Maybe I missed my true calling.

Anyway, today when coming back from the groomer (for the dog, not me) I noticed our True Green Man was lying on our steps. At first I thought he was sitting, but no he was sitting/laying back on the next step. I put my car in park and raced up to him, frantically trying to retrieve my cell phone. These large purses make an emergency call difficult because they tend to "eat" my phone. If you ever call me it will ring several times and just envision me saying, "crap, crap, where is my phone." Back to the story...I was just about ready to dump my whole purse on the ground when the man sat up. I sort of jumped and said "you need water, don't move." Let me tell you he looked terrible. I was really worried and brought out two huge glasses of ice water. After giving him a long winded lecture on heat stroke and water intake I realized he probably thought I was crazy.

Not much else going on other than the heat. Stay inside and sit in front of a fan.

Later

The Need to Read

In the last 6 months I have reacquired my need to read. When I was a kid my mom used to sneak into my room to catch me reading late which she always said was a hard thing to punish. My dad would complain about the Waldenbooks purchases and my mom would tell him she couldn't get me books fast enough. He said to take me to the library. This is a great idea, but I had read almost all the books in my age range at the neighborhood library. I would search the shelves for a new young adult fiction book. Sometime between junior high and high school this need to read evaporated. Well, it is back with a vengeance. The problem is I have a difficulty putting a book down once I am hooked.

My current recommendations:

On Beauty by Zadie Smith
If you liked Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections you will enjoy this novel looks at academia through the feuding Kipps and Belsey family. Full of flawed characters you will love to hate.

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
For years I have said I don't like science fiction. When this was selected for my book club I was a little hesitant, but wow is it amazing. A story of an expedition led by a Jesuit priest to an alien land is full of suspense. The details in the alien culture are amazing. The narrative is difficult for some readers because it jumps from present day to the past, but hang tight because it will start to make sense. Russell asked questions about religion without preaching. Her characters wonder how can one can live in a world where God cannot be trusted to end pain. Along with the religious themes the book explored the concept of first contact with another land.

A Mighty Heart by Mariane Pearl
The story of kidnapping and killing of journalist Daniel Pearl was very difficult for me to read. The intense pain and lack of control Mariane captures in her writing is palpable. It is so unreal to me that in a country so filled with people they came so close to finding him. Her strength was and is still amazing to me.

Of course I cannot end this post without a shout out to Harry Potter. I have so enjoyed the story and will miss the anticipation of another. If you are one of few that hasn't read the books. Do it...